I’m thrilled to announce my guest this week is JIM CUDDY from BLUE RODEO! In this fun interview, we dive deep on his entire career, starting from his early beginnings through all his solo albums, including his most recent called ALL THE WORLD FADES AWAY. 

We discuss Blue Rodeo’s early days, how they got signed to the Warner label and the upcoming Blue Rodeo Documentary. 

Jim’s solo career has included a JUNO award for Best Male Vocalist and Best Adult Alternative album of the year. In the 35 years since forming, Blue Rodeo have sold over 4 million albums, received dozens of JUNO Award nominations/wins, played over 2,000 shows, been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, been named to the Order of Canada and have been honoured with the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award. Most recently, Jim and his long time writing partner, Greg Keelor, were announced as new inductees into the CANADIAN SONGWRITING HALL OF FAME!!! (the ceremony will take place at Massey Hall Sept 28th) 

Enjoy! 

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Hi everyone!

Here’s part 2 of my interview with Gordie Johnson from BIG SUGAR. In this episode we continue to go deep into his career, delving into all his albums after signing with A&M Records. With super radio-friendly songs such as Turn the Lights On, Diggin’ a Hole, The Scene, If I Had My Way, Better Get Used to It, Roads Ahead and the classic anthem All Hell For A Basement, Gordie achieved 3 PLATINUM awards for the albums Hemi-Vision, Heated and Brothers and Sisters, Are You Ready?

We also touch on the reasons why Gordie left Canada to live in Austin (where he co-founded the ‘cowboy metal’ band, Grady), his eventual return to Canada, his bout with carpal tunnel and his seemingly never ending tour of all Canada's beautiful provinces. We end our conversation with Gordie's advice on getting started as an upcoming musician/artist.

Always insightful and with great stories to tell, this chat with Gordie was truly a special one for me because of our shared history and the renewed interest in the album 500 pounds, thanks to JACK WHITE.

Enjoy! 

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Hi everyone and welcome to another episode of the Talk Music podcast!

WOW I’m so excited about this one as my guest is GORDIE JOHNSON from BIG SUGAR! 

Gordie Johnson has earned numerous gold and platinum records with his band Big Sugar, and as producer/musician with Gov't Mule, Taj Mahal, North Mississippi Allstars, Toots Hibbert, Dennis Alcapone, Leroy Sibbles, Willi Williams, Nashville Pussy, Joel Plaskett, The Trews and Default. 

We chat about why JACK WHITE recently proclaimed the album 500 Pounds as the BEST blues-based album to ever come out of Canada! (also my first gold album on my Hypnotic label!) 

Gordie goes into detail about how he originally met Jack as a kid at a gig in AUSTIN, TX when he was the drummer for the band GOOBER AND THE PEAS, opening for BIG SUGAR. Jack burned out his 500 Pounds cassette and, a couple of decades later, was excited to re-release the album on his THIRD MAN label, letting the entire world know how much it meant to him growing up.

We also go deep into Gordie’s early beginnings, how I ended up signing him to my label and co-producing the BIG SUGAR debut album, earning the EDISON award in Holland for best blues album. Further discussion revolves around how BIG SUGAR broke wide open with the video for “Sleep in Late," and that exposure resulted in opening gigs for BB KING, ARETHA FRANKLIN and RAY CHARLES! We then delve into the making of the 500 pounds album and how Gordie worked his magic in the studio.  

Enjoy part one of his long, illustrious career!

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Hi and welcome to another episode of the TALK MUSIC podcast. 

My guest this week is singer-songwriter extraordinaire, ROB LAMOTHE. He can sing anything and make it sound great! With an "out of this world soulful voice" (ROLLING STONE EUROPE), Rob is a “mercurial artist who slides effortlessly from rustic roots music to soulful country pop to full-blown rock balladry" (THE TORONTO STAR). 

Rob has released many fine solo albums (all now being re-released on the COOL UK BORDER TOWN SOUND LABEL), one of which I produced called LONG LAZY CURVE - it’s one of my favourite records of my production career. Rob has also released 6 albums with the RIVERDOGS which feature guitarist VIVIAN CAMPBELL before he joined DEF LEPPARD. Vivian has remained in the lineup for their recordings including being involved in their outstanding last album “California”.

Rob continues to play solo shows, produce artists such as LOGAN STAATS whose last record was nominated for a JUNO award and he was also recently involved as associate producer of two critically acclaimed documentaries - the WATERWALK and BOIL ALERT.

Enjoy! 

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Super excited to post this fun, entertaining and informative chat with LEE AARON as we go deep into her entire career. A recent inductee into CANADA’S WALK OF FAME, she is one of Canada’s most iconic vocalists; a songwriter, producer, and fearless re-inventor. 

Our chat includes how, at the age of 19, she released her first album THE LEE AARON PROJECT and how in 1984 she wrote METAL QUEEN which solidified her as a trailblazer for women in rock. Over the years it has become an enduring anthem of empowerment for men and women alike. We then chat about how Aaron went on to work with producers like BOB EZRIN (Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd) and PETER COLEMAN (Blondie, Pat Benatar), with stories about later releases 1989’s BODYROCK and 1991’s SOME GIRLS DO, which both reached MULTI-PLATINUM status and included chart-toppers like “Whatcha Do To My Body” and “Hands On.” She’s shared stages with Heart, Bon Jovi, Joan Jett, Suzi Quatro, Sinead O’Connor, Mötley Crüe, Van Morrison, and more. Eighteen albums into her illustrious career, including 10 JUNO nominations, Aaron was also honoured with a permanent star on the ARTS WALK OF FAME in her former hometown (Brampton) for her contribution to Canadian Music.

After a long hiatus to raise her family and a successful venture into jazz, our chat continues about how Aaron blazed back onto the scene in 2016 with the FIRE and GASOLINE and DIAMOND BABY BLUES, garnering rave reviews. I had the honour of co-managing her at this time with long time manager Pierre Paradis. With a wealth of new original material, she has since released another 5 albums, all of which she self-produced: a Christmas album, a live album and 3 studio albums: RADIO ON! (2021), ELEVATE (2022) and her latest release TATTOO ME (2024) [all recorded with Sean Kelly (guitar), John Cody (drums) and Dave Reimer (bass), who will be on tour doing dates in Canada and Europe this summer].

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Welcome to another episode of the TALK MUSIC Podcast! This week’s guest is THE SPOONS. I loved this fun chat with both SANDY and GORD, including their most recent release ECHOES featuring Alan Frew, Gowan, Strange Advance, Kon Kan, Jean Marc Pisapia (the Box) and others doing their own interpretations of some of the SPOONS most popular songs. I also go deep on their entire, illustrious career, including working with producers Daniel Lanois, Nile Rogers (who produced the Talkback album and songs Romantic Traffic, Old Emotions, Tell no Lies) and John Punter (who produced their Big breakthrough album Arias and Symphonies, including the song Nova Heart). We also chat about the album I produced called Bridges over Borders.

Enjoy! 

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Hi everyone! On this week’s TALK MUSIC podcast, I’m thrilled to interview Derbyshire, UK native and guitar ace, the legend CHRIS SPEDDING

Having recently seen him play live with ANTON FIG on drums and KEITH LENTON on bass, I can vouch that, at 79 years young, Chris still has it! His illustrious career includes session work with Cream bass player Jack Bruce, Harry Nilsson, Elton John, Brian Eno, Tom Waits, Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry, Joan Armatrading, John Cale, Roger Daltrey and Paul McCartney (“Give My Regards to Broad Street”), to name a few. 

Spedding has also worked as a producer, mixer and musician on a number of projects by Toronto-area punk rock acts: Teenage Head, Forgotten Rebels, Viletones, the Curse, the Ugly, the Demics, the ‘B’ Girls, the Mods, the Sinisters, Toby Swann, Johnnie Lovesin and Art Bergmann. Our chat also includes his time spent touring and recording with ROBERT GORDON, his involvement in how he ended up producing the first demos for the SEX PISTOLS, and how ‘MOTORBIKIN” became a top 20 hit in the UK. 

I also had the pleasure of working with Chris many years ago when I produced a version of the track “New York City” by the Demics that ended up on his solo album CAFE DAYS which I released on my Hypnotic label. Enjoy! 

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For this new TALK MUSIC podcast I was thrilled to also have HARRY PIWERKA join me as a co-host. Harry and I went to high school together and reconnected a while back. As it turns out, he’s also a great musician and was a part of the Toronto's vibrant music scene in the 70’s as a member of the band MORNINGTON DRIVE. Harry is also friends with our guest, BASSIST extraordinaire and all round musician and NICE guy JEFF JONES. 

His long esteemed history of performing bass duties for some of Canada’s great artists is really impressive. Jeff has played and recorded with TOM COCHRANE (and RED RIDER) for many years now (and still does) and is also on call regularly for BURTON CUMMINGS, who he's now performed with for over 20 years! 

Jeff also performed with Alex Lifeson and drummer John Rutsey in the first incarnation of RUSH, serving as their primary singer and bassist in the summer of 1968. He was replaced by GEDDY LEE in September 1968 before their second performance. 

When Jeff was just a teenager, he tasted fame early when he joined the group OCEAN who went on to have the MILLION selling hit song “Put your Hand in the Hand”. He has also spent time performing with GOWAN, MOLLY JOHNSON and the Infidels, RONNIE HAWKINS, released a well received solo album and also performs sometimes as a duo with GERRY FINN.

We go deep into his past including his beginnings when he came to live in Toronto from Chicago and our chat encompasses his entire career. ENJOY! 

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Hi everyone! On this new TALK MUSIC episode, we're going to do something I haven't done yet: go deep into the harder-edged genre of Metal and Hard Rock. My guest is MICHEL LANGEVIN, the founder/drummer extraordinaire of French-Canadian progressive sci-fi metal act, VOIVOD, who counts DAVE GROHL as a fan, has toured with RUSH, been featured on OZZFEST and once included ex-METALLICA bassist JASON NEWSTEAD in their lineup. 

VOIVOD is a band I respect immensely and hold in very high regard, and I was thrilled to be associated with them in the 90’s when I released two of their albums, NEGATRON and PHOBOS, on my Hypnotic Label worldwide. They are revered around the world by everyone who loves unique and distinctive harder-edged music, and they just celebrated 40 years of recording and performing! I go deep on their amazing career arc starting from their very beginnings in Quebec and progressing across their 16 studio albums! 

I loved my chat with Michel and I'm excited for everyone to hear it. Enjoy! 

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Welcome to a new season of THE TALK MUSIC podcast! I just wanted to say BIG THANKS to all the guests who have chatted with me so far! Our episodes regularly chart in the Top 20 on Apple Podcast, so thanks SO MUCH to our listeners!

I’m excited to kick off this 2024 season with Part 2 of my conversation with top music executive DEREK SHULMAN. If you missed Part 1, go back and listen as we discuss his career as singer for prog sensation GENTLE GIANT.

This engaging chat charts his transition from musician to music executive, and features stories such as signing BON JOVI, AC/DC, BAD COMPANY, PANTERA and DREAM THEATRE. As President of the label ROADRUNNER, Derek signed NICKELBACK and SLIPKNOT. We end our interview with his advice to artists starting out now and looking to navigate our ever evolving business. Enjoy! 

The Talk Music Podcast features host Tom Treumuth, a Multi-Platinum music producer/manager/entrepreneur. The focus is on both Canadian and Global music commentary.

Over his 40 year music career, Tom Treumuth has worked across all aspects of the music industry, including as a talent scout for RCA New York and producing over 60 albums, with 8 achieving Gold and Platinum status (Honeymoon Suite, Helix, Big Sugar). His Hypnotic label released over 100 albums across all genres via A&M/Universal including artists such as Big Sugar, Anvil, Voivod, Figgy Duff, the Look People, Grimskunk, Chris Spedding and many others. 

Tom also owned and ran a recording studio, was a booking agent and was signed as a songwriter to RCA Publishing in New York. Tom loved artist management and during his career managed Honeymoon Suite, Lee Aaron, Platinum US rock group Steelheart and Hamilton born Kazzer ( Pedal to the Metal) who Tom signed to Columbia Records in New York. Tom also managed and Co produced rock act Gypsy Rose whom he signed to RCA in New York where he worked closely with Gene Simmons. More recently, Tom was Co-Managing Director of indie label Frostbyte (Universal) where he was involved in signing the Headstones and Matt Good. Tom also co-founded Latitude 44, a tech conference in Toronto and was Artistic Director for Estonian Music Week. Tom’s career started as a keyboard musician in True Myth, who recorded the world's 1st digital rock album on Warner Music.

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